Implementation of Educational Technology Solutions: EDT732 Week 3 Wiki
Introduction
I had been asked by my high school principal to work with the foreign language teachers to help them to start integrating technology. The three teachers were not happy campers! They already used DVDs in their classrooms, and they did not need to add anything more into their packed curriculums (thank you very much!).
The foreign language teachers thought I was there to teach them PowerPoint (their students had told them they were doing PowerPoint in biology). The teachers were greatly relieved when they heard they might not have to learn PowerPoint. Successful technology integration supports the curriculum content, learning objectives and learning goals are always the first priority. According to Manning and Johnson (2011), technology tools that do not support learning goals are worthless.
Dr. Entrekin’s Rule #1 – Don’t Ever Select the Technology First
Identify the Learning Goal I asked the teachers to first review course objectives, and test scores. They were to identify the objectives students seemed to have the most trouble meeting or understanding. We then looked at possible technology tools that might help students better meet those specific objectives. In the end, the Spanish 4 teacher, needed her students to do more writing, we had her student’s blog. The German 2 teacher found her students had trouble understanding family relationships, and we had them use a mind mapping software program. The French 1 teacher identified vocabulary as a weak point and her students created online flash cards.
Assess, Assess, Assess Always take the time to go back and see if test score were raised, if students had a better understanding of learning objectives. Then revise. For example in the case of the Spanish teacher, after the initial novelty of the blogging wore off, she decided to make her student blogs public, rather than just available to the school population. Student writing changed when they realized, the whole world could read what they wrote. The German teacher wanted her students to work on the mind maps at home, or in an after school program and identified online mind maps student could use. The French teacher eventually introduced flash card programs that could be used on cell phones, and shared between students. The French teacher saw a spike in vocabulary grades when students starting sharing their mobile device flash cards!
Student’s talk, remember, the comment about PowerPoint in the first paragraph? Students notice teachers that integrate new technology tools (Manning & Johnson, 2011). Revising the technology tools you use to meet instructional objectives is important.
Keep it Simple Aim for Success When selecting a technology to meet instructional goals for the first time, keep the technology and the application as simple as possible. Do not go for all the bells and whistles, go for the minimal. I am an advocate of pilot programs. Try it out in one class, before introducing to all the classes. Work out the kinks and then introduce the lesson to the rest of your classes. Even more important is to actually do the lesson yourself. By doing a simple lesson yourself you have an example to show students.
Pacansky-Brock (2013) suggests telling students why you are introducing a new technology. Students today want to know how the technology is relevant to their success (Pacansky-Brock, 2013). A simple, “students in the previous class were having trouble learning these vocabulary words, this program should make it easier for you to master the vocabulary and earn a high grade!”.
Basic Checklist for Selecting Classroom Technology
Accessibility and Learner Readiness – Will all students be able to access the program in the classroom, or at home? Do all students have the expertise needed to use the program? (Manning & Johnson, 2011)
Cost – Will there be a financial cost to the school or students for the program or the equipment needed for the program? (Manning & Johnson, 2011)
Special Needs – What additional equipment is needed for special needs students?
Note: The optional Participation Assignment for week 3 involves time management. If you are taking this course, your goal is a doctoral degree. Identify a calendar or scheduling tool that can be used on a smartphone, tablet, or computer that will identify the elements in your busy schedule, andcan be accessed by all members of your family. To earn credit for two participation posts for week 3, post the name of the calendar or scheduling tool with a brief description of how your family members will access it and how it will meet your goal of a doctoral degree. Be sure to include your name! There is no required APA references or minimum word count. Tools for Time Management
Google calendar can be used to manage my time, tasks, and to share information with others. Users must have a Google account. The calendar is web-based, so users can view or edit the calendar from any device using the Google calendar app, via web browser, or within a smartphone’s calendar feature. Individual events can be shared with others by invitation, or the entire calendar can be shared with others (who also have a Google compatible account). When sharing the calendar, the user can customize permissions for others to view or edit calendar events. Multiple calendars can be concurrently displayed, each with its own color. Google calendar also has a task list, where users can make an itemized list with or without due dates. Tasks with due dates appear on the calendar. The task list is ideal for managing multiple assignments, such as participation posts, weekly assignments, team contributions, or reflection posts. Google calendar is versatile to meet the needs of doctoral students allowing access from various devices, the options to share events with others, and features that will assist with time management.
Contributed by Darlene Vann
Keep & Share:
Are online calendars for groups. Their specialty is having the ability to combine multiple calendars from numerous people into one calendar if desired. With this use of Keep & Share, all the calendars are kept easily up to date in real-time, and it is easy to share your schedule with anyone if desired. Also unlike other calendars that might limit the users to use short sentences to describe the event using color coding Keep & Share gives the user the option to add links and images, send event reminders, and users have the ability to customize their fonts styles making events easier to distinguish. With the use of the overlay feature all users are able to see all calendars at once on one main calendar; easier to see work, and family events on the same schedule so that you are able to better plan your day. Also with the use of the sharing and privacy options you are able to stay in control at all times who and when someone can view your schedule. Also, there is a history log so you can see when any changes were made to the schedule.
Introduction
I had been asked by my high school principal to work with the foreign language teachers to help them to start integrating technology. The three teachers were not happy campers! They already used DVDs in their classrooms, and they did not need to add anything more into their packed curriculums (thank you very much!).
The foreign language teachers thought I was there to teach them PowerPoint (their students had told them they were doing PowerPoint in biology). The teachers were greatly relieved when they heard they might not have to learn PowerPoint. Successful technology integration supports the curriculum content, learning objectives and learning goals are always the first priority. According to Manning and Johnson (2011), technology tools that do not support learning goals are worthless.
Dr. Entrekin’s Rule #1 – Don’t Ever Select the Technology First
Identify the Learning Goal
I asked the teachers to first review course objectives, and test scores. They were to identify the objectives students seemed to have the most trouble meeting or understanding. We then looked at possible technology tools that might help students better meet those specific objectives. In the end, the Spanish 4 teacher, needed her students to do more writing, we had her student’s blog. The German 2 teacher found her students had trouble understanding family relationships, and we had them use a mind mapping software program. The French 1 teacher identified vocabulary as a weak point and her students created online flash cards.
Assess, Assess, Assess
Always take the time to go back and see if test score were raised, if students had a better understanding of learning objectives. Then revise. For example in the case of the Spanish teacher, after the initial novelty of the blogging wore off, she decided to make her student blogs public, rather than just available to the school population. Student writing changed when they realized, the whole world could read what they wrote. The German teacher wanted her students to work on the mind maps at home, or in an after school program and identified online mind maps student could use. The French teacher eventually introduced flash card programs that could be used on cell phones, and shared between students. The French teacher saw a spike in vocabulary grades when students starting sharing their mobile device flash cards!
Student’s talk, remember, the comment about PowerPoint in the first paragraph? Students notice teachers that integrate new technology tools (Manning & Johnson, 2011). Revising the technology tools you use to meet instructional objectives is important.
Keep it Simple Aim for Success
When selecting a technology to meet instructional goals for the first time, keep the technology and the application as simple as possible. Do not go for all the bells and whistles, go for the minimal. I am an advocate of pilot programs. Try it out in one class, before introducing to all the classes. Work out the kinks and then introduce the lesson to the rest of your classes. Even more important is to actually do the lesson yourself. By doing a simple lesson yourself you have an example to show students.
Pacansky-Brock (2013) suggests telling students why you are introducing a new technology. Students today want to know how the technology is relevant to their success (Pacansky-Brock, 2013). A simple, “students in the previous class were having trouble learning these vocabulary words, this program should make it easier for you to master the vocabulary and earn a high grade!”.
Basic Checklist for Selecting Classroom Technology
Note: The optional Participation Assignment for week 3 involves time management. If you are taking this course, your goal is a doctoral degree. Identify a calendar or scheduling tool that can be used on a smartphone, tablet, or computer that will identify the elements in your busy schedule, and can be accessed by all members of your family. To earn credit for two participation posts for week 3, post the name of the calendar or scheduling tool with a brief description of how your family members will access it and how it will meet your goal of a doctoral degree. Be sure to include your name! There is no required APA references or minimum word count.
Tools for Time Management
Google calendar can be used to manage my time, tasks, and to share information with others. Users must have a Google account. The calendar is web-based, so users can view or edit the calendar from any device using the Google calendar app, via web browser, or within a smartphone’s calendar feature. Individual events can be shared with others by invitation, or the entire calendar can be shared with others (who also have a Google compatible account). When sharing the calendar, the user can customize permissions for others to view or edit calendar events. Multiple calendars can be concurrently displayed, each with its own color. Google calendar also has a task list, where users can make an itemized list with or without due dates. Tasks with due dates appear on the calendar. The task list is ideal for managing multiple assignments, such as participation posts, weekly assignments, team contributions, or reflection posts. Google calendar is versatile to meet the needs of doctoral students allowing access from various devices, the options to share events with others, and features that will assist with time management.
Contributed by Darlene Vann
Keep & Share:
Are online calendars for groups. Their specialty is having the ability to combine multiple calendars from numerous people into one calendar if desired. With this use of Keep & Share, all the calendars are kept easily up to date in real-time, and it is easy to share your schedule with anyone if desired. Also unlike other calendars that might limit the users to use short sentences to describe the event using color coding Keep & Share gives the user the option to add links and images, send event reminders, and users have the ability to customize their fonts styles making events easier to distinguish. With the use of the overlay feature all users are able to see all calendars at once on one main calendar; easier to see work, and family events on the same schedule so that you are able to better plan your day. Also with the use of the sharing and privacy options you are able to stay in control at all times who and when someone can view your schedule. Also, there is a history log so you can see when any changes were made to the schedule.
Keep&Share
Contributed by Retta Salerno
References
Manning, S., & Johnson, K. E. (2011). The technology toolbelt for teaching. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Pacansky-Brock, M. (2013). Best practices for teaching with emerging technologies. New York, NY: Routledge.
How to cite this wiki:
Entrekin, F. (2017). Implementation of educational technology solutions: EDT732 week 3 wiki. Retrieved from http://edt732integratingtechnology.wikispaces.com/